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Maki & Brian
DeLaet
EduCyber founders
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May 2003 EduNotes
EduCyber is pleased to
present the May 2003 Edition of EduNotes. In this issue, learn what
it will take to freshen up your tired web site, learn how you can
recycle or donate your computer and save money, find out how to
identify and stop email hoaxes, and find out what Ed Cyber has to
say about whining computers. Enjoy and as always, send feedback
to edunotes@educyber.com.
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Is Your Web Site Tired?
When was the last time you updated your web site? Or when was the
last time you changed the design?
If your web site still has that "90's" look to it, we
can help. Maybe a friend or family member helped you get your site
going and then they moved on. We can help you freshen up your site,
giving it a new look and even make it easier for your visitors to
find the information they need to become customers.
If you'd like a free review of your web site, give us a call today
at (720)275-4646 or fire off an email to info@educyber.com.
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Recycling PCs
What to do with that old or aging PC is fast becoming an issue around
the world. In this age of "disposable" PCs - disposable
because replacing is often cheaper than upgrading - figuring out
what to do with all that expensive trash is an environmental challenge.
First, let's examine whether you should be tossing it or donating
it. If it is a PC with a processor speed of 250 MHz or faster, there
is a good chance a school or other organization in your area could
put it to good use. If you're in the Denver area, give us a call
and we'll either handle it or put you in touch with someone who
can. If you're not in the Denver area, you can try contacting local
schools or charities to see if they accept such donations. Usually
donating your old computer can be a tax write-off as well.
If you really have a dinosaur (slower than 250 MHz processor), and
are ready to get a new computer, there is more good news. Many manufacturers
now support computer recycling.
Gateway (gateway.com)
will give you up to a $50 rebate if you donate or recycle your old
computer. This applies to both laptops and desktops. You fill out
the rebate form and return it to Gateway.
Dell (dell.com) and
HP (hp.com) both will
recycle your old computer(s) regardless of what brand they are.
They both charge you a fee for coming to pick up your old stuff.
You box it and they pick it up. Dell charges $15 per 50 lb. box
and HP charges between "$13 and $34 per item" for recycling.
HP does offer up to $50 in rebates on the next purchase when you
use their service.
In addition, the Colorado Office of Energy Management and Conservation
has information on several different local places that recycle old
computers. You can check out their web site at http://www.state.co.us/oemc/programs/electronic.htm
and download the pdf file from the Computer Reuse and Recycling
Options in Colorado link.
As the pile of junk grows higher, the number of places and people
willing to help you do something about it is growing too. So don't
wait until the pile overwhelms you.
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E-mail Hoaxes
I had managed to make it through several months with only one or
two email hoaxes coming my way. Then just in the last week two worked
their way into my inbox from well-meaning acquaintances.
Hoaxes take every kind of shape and form, one of the two I just
received was an Email petition to get prayer back into the schools.
The question is not whether you agree or disagree with the intent
of the petition but in the manner in which it is circulated, the
potential for abuse of the addresses on the list and whether such
a petition is based on any real and existing problem.
The second message was about poor nine-year old Penny who has been
missing for two weeks and maybe if we send this email which contains
her picture to everyone in our address book, we will eventually
find her. The only problem is the email to which we should send
any information is not valid, the message has been around for more
than two years and none of the real missing children web sites list
a Penny Brown.
First, when you put your email address on an email petition and
then forward it to ALL of your friends (or even a subset thereof)
do not be surprised when your volume of spam increases dramatically.
That is one way that spammers get their addresses.
Second, NEVER EVER EVER send on an email that pleads or commands
you to send it on to everyone in your address book. Instead, if
a message tugs at your heartstrings or otherwise motivates you to
want to respond, first take a minute or two to check it out. Where?
There are several good ways of checking this out on the web. Visit
Snopes (www.snopes.com)
or Urban Legends (urbanlegends.about.com)
or Break the Chain (www.breakthechain.org)
and look to see if they have any information about your particular
email. These sites are dedicated to poking holes in the balloon
of misinformation circulating on the Internet. Another way (the
one that worked for me in both these cases) is to visit Google.com
and type in a few key words from the email and hit Search. Total
time to find both hoaxes? Fifty seconds.
Third, thinking the dilemma described through logically, you can
usually determine whether it's valid or not. A petition to President
Bush to allow prayer in schools. Is the President part of the legislative
branch of government that makes and amends laws? No. Is the President
part of the judicial branch of government that determines whether
laws on the books conform to the constitution? No. Is an email petition
addressed to the President likely to have any effect other than
giving my email address to hundreds of spammers? No.
So before you send along that petition, plea for help and other
email that needs to go to everyone in your address book, take 30
seconds to a minute to investigate the validity.
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Ask Ed Cyber
Dear Ed,
My computer (two years old) has started making a whining noise when
I turn it on. Usually after a few minutes the whine goes away but
last week it stayed on for the whole 2 hours I had the computer
on. I finally had to turn it off because the noise was driving me
crazy! Help!
Up the Wall
Dear Mr. Wall,
Don't turn your computer on anymore and the whine should go away.
But if that is not an option, it sounds like you might have a fan
problem. Most desktop computers have two fans in them. There is
one big fan that cools the power supply and draws fresh air into
the computer chassis and another one that blows directly on the
CPU (Central Processing Unit) to keep it from overheating.
Replacing either of these can be a daunting task. If you are determined
to do it yourself though, remove the cover of your computer and
then power it up so you can determine which fan it is. The main
fan is a part of the power supply so if it is the problem you will
need to replace the whole power supply. Usually any computer store
(the local stores that make off-brand computers) will have power
supplies available. Make sure you get one that is right for your
computer. Then you have to disconnect the power connections to the
motherboard and any drives that are getting power. Then unscrew
the power supply from the chassis and remove it. Place the new one
in the chassis, screw it in and reconnect all the power cables.
I told you it was a daunting task, didn't I?
I'm not even going to attempt to tell you how to change the fan
on the CPU because there are so many different kinds of CPUs and
each has the fan attached in a different way. Some (older) models
even have the fan attached in such a way (usually soldered) that
it can't be replaced without replacing the heatsink and sometimes
even the CPU itself!
If it isn't already obvious, I recommend calling the good folk at
EduCyber to get a helping hand if you suspect a fan is going bad.
And under no circumstance do I recommend what one computer technician's
solution was to a bad cpu fan - removing the fan. The noise stopped
but then a few days later so did the computer. For good.
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Like what you just read? Send your friends a copy or direct them
to our site so they can get it, too!
© 2003 EduCyber,
Inc. This newsletter is brought to you by EduCyber, Inc. EduNotes
can be viewed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week online at http://www.educyber.com/edunotes/index.php.
Visit us on the web at http://www.educyber.com
or call us at (720) 275-4646. Permission is hereby granted to redistribute
all or part of this newsletter as long as this entire copyright
message is included.
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For questions, or to be removed from this monthly newsletter distribution,
email us at edunotes@educyber.com.
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